Founded in Ottawa in 1979, Mexicali Rosa's (Mexi's) is a restaurant that serves "California Style Mexican Food". Mexi's has two locations in New Brunswick: Moncton and now Quispamsis (opened February 2022). We decided to go to the Quispamsis location as soon as we heard that they were open. We could not wait another day to have this epic experience! Am I spoiling it that this will be a good review? You probably knew from seeing the pictures anyways! Both locations will be divided in this blog entry like I've been doing with other restaurants with multiple locations.
Mexicali Rosa's Quispamsis (KV Mexi's)
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| KV Mexi's Carne (beef) Nachos - October 2022 |
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| KV Mexi's Chicken Wing Nachos - June 2022 |
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| KV Mexi's Veggie Nachos - March 2022 |
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| KV Mexi's Veggie Nachos - March 2022 |
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| KV Mexi's Carne (beef) Nachos - February 2022 |
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| KV Mexi's Carne (beef) Nachos - February 2022 |
Distribution of Toppings
These single-layer nachos had beef and cheese on every chip. Of course with just the one layer of chips, it is not hard to have good distribution of toppings. The same thing applied to the veggie nachos and the chicken wing nachos.
Quality
Each large, crispy chip had plenty of spicy beef - every bite was an explosion of flavor! I thought the beef had just the right amount of kick to it, and was nice and juicy. If I were to convert it to the chicken wing sauce hotness scale, I would say it was a "medium" spice. These nachos do come with sauce on them, and I usually do not like having sauce on the chips, but these chips were not drenched in the sauce - you get a nice drizzle of it. They did well in terms of the toast factor; however, there could have been a lot more cheese on the chips. I recommend ordering extra cheese on these nachos.
The veggie nachos had so much variety of veggies where every bite was an epic mountain of flavour. I also recommend ordering extra cheese on the veggie nachos.
The experience of the Chicken Wing Nachos might have been biased because we watched the Seadogs win the Memorial Cup while eating these. How can you say you had bad nachos while seeing your local hockey team win the cup? I'll have to have them again when I am not so distracted!
Value
The Carne Nachos are $21.29 and they come with a salsa and a sour cream. You can get two salsas or two sour creams if you want to swap it up and it would be the same price. For an extra guacamole, it is $2.99 extra. For an extra salsa, it is $1.49 extra. For an extra sour cream, it is $1.99 extra. There are other plates of nachos you can order: Mexicali Nachos ($13.49), Veggie ($15.99), Con Pollo ($21.99), Chicken Wing ($22.99) and Chipotle Chicken Supreme ($24.29). The price is pretty steep for just a single layer of nachos, especially compared to the quantities you get at other places for the same price - thinking of Snooty Fox or Boston Pizza for example. Size is not all that matters of course... a significant part of the value equation is the atmosphere, and you do get top quality nachos, great service and a Mexican-inspired atmosphere - perfect for enjoying a plate of nachos.
Service
We were there the day after the soft opening, and we went a little later in hopes of avoiding the supper rush. Word had gotten out via social media that KV Mexi's was finally open and I think that all the foodies were out that night. It was a 35 minute wait for a table and it was a full house. Despite how busy they were, the servers were very friendly and the food came very quickly.
Service has been wonderful ever since and we have gone around 4 times in 2022 so far.
Quantity
We shared as an evening snack and were satisfied with the quantity. If you share as a meal when you are really hungry, especially if you share with more than two people, you would probably want these as an appetizer rather than the main event. I remembered this detail and had the veggie nachos as an appetizer for our second visit.
Conclusion
Their quality, atmosphere, and service are all excellent. There was great latin music playing the whole time, which almost makes you feel like you're down south. The food and cocktail menus have a good variety. I would love it if they could offer multi-layer nachos, and next time we will ask for extra cheese. I think KV Mexi's first few weeks were a success and I plan to make it a regular place to go for some California-style Mexican food.
Nacho Blog Rating A-
Mexicali Rosa's Moncton
We went to the Moncton location in 2018 and had to make another visit in 2021 in order to be updated on Mexicali Rosa's nacho experience. We ended up having two plates of nachos (Con Pollo & Chipotle Chicken) and left very happy and satisfied. Let's see what we had to say!
Distribution of Toppings
Regarding the Con Pollo nachos, there could have been more toppings on the outside chips. That being said, for both plates there was something for every chip. Until the very last bite my mouth took in a whole bunch of flavors and I was very happy with the overall distribution of toppings. However, it was hard not to have a good distribution of toppings with the nachos having only one layer. I made the same argument for Peddlers Creek.
Quality
I found the Con Pollo nachos to be a little bland in flavor. That could be expected when you are ordering nachos with mostly chicken and cheese and then you order another plate which would seem like the "works" of nachos. I was really interested in the Con Pollo Nachos because the owner of Costa Nachos said that she got her inspiration from these nachos. The Mexi's Chipotle Chicken Nachos had everything you could need in a nacho. It had the bacon and honey chipotle sauce which I enjoyed (despite not really being a sauce lover) and I appreciated how the sauce did not make the chips soggy. I also enjoyed how the Chipotle Chicken Nachos had more veggies and just a big mouthful of flavor.
Value
The Con Pollo Nachos are $20 and the Chipotle Chicken Nachos are $22. These plates come with a salsa or a sour cream. I think the quality is pretty good; however, for a smaller amount of chips than usual, the price needs to be a little lower in order to be considered a good value.
Quantity
I think that one plate is good for one person for a meal. I was pretty full by the time we got to the second plate which was the Chipotle Nachos.
Conclusion
Mexicali Rosa's is a very fun place to go. It has a good atmosphere, you get delicious tortilla chips offered as a free appetizer, great margaritas and good quality nachos. While the quality sets Mexi's apart from the competition in Moncton, I think they should add more chips to increase the quantity rating as well as the value. I still stand by the same rating I gave them back in 2018 so this means they are consistent!
Nacho Blog Rating: A-
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| Mexi's Chipotle Chicken Nachos - August 2021 |
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| Mexi's Chipotle Chicken Nachos - August 2021 |
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| Mexi's Con Pollo Nachos - August 2021 |
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| Mexi's Con Pollo Nachos - August 2021 |
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| Mexi's Gringo Nachos - October 2018 |
Distribution of Toppings
Regarding the Con Pollo nachos, there could have been more toppings on the outside chips. That being said, for both plates there was something for every chip. Until the very last bite my mouth took in a whole bunch of flavors and I was very happy with the overall distribution of toppings. However, it was hard not to have a good distribution of toppings with the nachos having only one layer. I made the same argument for Peddlers Creek.
Quality
I found the Con Pollo nachos to be a little bland in flavor. That could be expected when you are ordering nachos with mostly chicken and cheese and then you order another plate which would seem like the "works" of nachos. I was really interested in the Con Pollo Nachos because the owner of Costa Nachos said that she got her inspiration from these nachos. The Mexi's Chipotle Chicken Nachos had everything you could need in a nacho. It had the bacon and honey chipotle sauce which I enjoyed (despite not really being a sauce lover) and I appreciated how the sauce did not make the chips soggy. I also enjoyed how the Chipotle Chicken Nachos had more veggies and just a big mouthful of flavor.
Value
The Con Pollo Nachos are $20 and the Chipotle Chicken Nachos are $22. These plates come with a salsa or a sour cream. I think the quality is pretty good; however, for a smaller amount of chips than usual, the price needs to be a little lower in order to be considered a good value.
Quantity
I think that one plate is good for one person for a meal. I was pretty full by the time we got to the second plate which was the Chipotle Nachos.
Conclusion
Mexicali Rosa's is a very fun place to go. It has a good atmosphere, you get delicious tortilla chips offered as a free appetizer, great margaritas and good quality nachos. While the quality sets Mexi's apart from the competition in Moncton, I think they should add more chips to increase the quantity rating as well as the value. I still stand by the same rating I gave them back in 2018 so this means they are consistent!
Nacho Blog Rating: A-